Contributions
948 recent contributions in Hansard
HANSARDWinter Fuel PaymentI thank the hon. Gentleman for his question. He will know that this was not a decision that we wanted or expected to make. The reason we have taken it is that we have to deal with…07 Oct 2024HANSARDWinter Fuel PaymentThere are 200,000 more pensioners in poverty, and I am happy to put those figures into the public domain to set the record straight. The savings we have put forward take into…07 Oct 2024HANSARDWinter Fuel PaymentIn 2017, the right hon. Gentleman’s party manifesto promised to means-test winter fuel payments. Until Conservative Members know that they have to apologise to the British people…07 Oct 2024HANSARDWinter Fuel PaymentI would urge all hon. Members in this House to work with their local councils, as I am doing, to make sure that those on housing benefit and other pensioners know what they are…07 Oct 2024HANSARDWinter Fuel PaymentMy hon. Friend raises a very important point. This is not just about urging people to come forward and claim. We are writing to pensioners on housing benefit for the first time…07 Oct 2024HANSARDWinter Fuel PaymentI thank my hon. Friend for her question, and I welcome her to her position as Chair of the Select Committee. Alongside our work to increase pension credit uptake, the household…07 Oct 2024HANSARDWinter Fuel PaymentI know that the hon. Gentleman has focused over many years on health and healthcare issues, and I would say to him that we are in this situation because his Government left a £22…07 Oct 2024HANSARDWinter Fuel PaymentAgain, I say to the right hon. Lady that the reason so many of the poorest pensioners are missing out is that her Government failed to increase pension credit uptake. We have…07 Oct 2024HANSARDWinter Fuel PaymentI say gently to the hon. Gentleman that upon coming into government, we discovered that 880,000 pensioners are not claiming the pension credit they are entitled to. Given that his…07 Oct 2024HANSARDWinter Fuel PaymentMay I say briefly, Mr Speaker, that as my right hon. and learned Friend the Prime Minister has said, 7 October last year was the deadliest day in Jewish history since the…07 Oct 2024HANSARD Social SecurityMy hon. Friend is absolutely right. I would make that point in response to the faux outrage of Conservative Members, who left 880,000 pensioners, the very poorest, not getting the…10 Sept 2024HANSARD Social SecurityI will give way to the former Chair of the Treasury Committee.10 Sept 2024HANSARD Social SecurityIs that the reason why Conservative Members never took the action needed to increase pension credit uptake? We take a different approach. All the savings the Chancellor has…10 Sept 2024HANSARD Social SecurityI know the right hon. Gentleman will care about the increase in uptake in pension credit that we need, and that he will also care about those just above the threshold, which I…10 Sept 2024HANSARD Social SecurityI will not. But the truth we had to confront coming into office was that up to 880,000 of the very poorest pensioners are not even claiming the pension credit that they are…10 Sept 2024HANSARD Social SecurityI will come on to extra help for those just above the threshold in a moment, but I want to spell out what we are doing on pension credit. We have done more to increase pension…10 Sept 2024HANSARD Social SecurityI could not have put it better myself: there is faux outrage from Conservative Members about those just above the pension credit threshold, when it was their former Tory…10 Sept 2024HANSARD Social SecurityThis has been a really important debate about a serious issue, with many heartfelt contributions. My hon. Friend the Member for Hackney South and Shoreditch (Dame Meg Hillier),…10 Sept 2024HANSARDCost of LivingToday we are announcing funding for an extension to the household support fund, which will enable local authorities in England to help vulnerable people and families receive…02 Sept 2024HANSARDLabour MarketToday I am announcing plans to get Britain working as part of the Government’s No. 1 mission: growing the economy. We have seen record numbers—2.8 million—excluded from the…23 Jul 2024